Labradors

[iheartmydog]

I thought I posted here.
Dakota is allergic to fleas, and we haven't found anything else so far.

[Oliver & Henry's Mum]

Cel, this is a "breed specific" thread, as opposed to "Breeds and Mixes", or "Health". While Dakota is lovely, and a wonderful dog, he is clearly not a purebred Lab. He is unique and one of a kind, in the most delightful way.

I will leave your comment as it is important for people to know that dogs can be allergic to fleas. I swear fleas bite some humans more than others, which I don't know if that constitutes an allergy to them or we just taste better.

Allergies, and broad conversations relating to those issues, should really be in the Health Section as they are surely not limited to Labs in particular.

[Wigglebutt1]

My boy Captain has never had allergies, though he does have a few lumps under the skin that turned out to be fatty deposits. He also gets ear infections from time to time, but regular cleanings with some stuff the vet gave us, and that became far less common.

[eyork]

My chocolate lab, Reese, is extremely allergic to everything pretty much. We make all of his food and treats at home as he has issues with chicken, lamb, beef, dairy, wheat, and a bunch of other things that we have written down at home so he doesn’t eat them. If he does eat these, he scratches like mad and will vomit and get sick. In addition to his food allergies, he also has issues with various weeds that make him itchy to the point that he scratches till he bleeds. We have to give him constant baths during the spring as that is when it is at its worse.

We found this out from our vet when we took him in for his legs for scratching. They also have some pills that help him to stop the scratching, but they make him sleepy so it is our last resort. Pretty much the only time we have to really watch him is the spring.

[Oliver & Henry's Mum]

Allergies are very common in Labs and Retrievers. It's good to know that you are aware of his allergies and feed him accordingly. I'm sure Reese is a happier fellow for having caring humans. I suspect the drug to which you are referring is an antihistamine of some sort, as those do make dogs (and humans) rather sleepy.

That's not always a bad thing.

We also have a Health Section on the Forums which discusses allergies, as well as many other maladies at length that you may wish to investigate.

[ysexton]

Exercise: I was watching the Dog Whispherer the other day and he was using some form of roller blading for exercising dogs with excessive energy. Looked like the dog was having a ton of fun!